Viewing apparatus

ABSTRACT

Apparatus for receiving a stack of flat objects and for serially presenting such objects to a viewing window is disclosed. The viewing apparatus includes a manually operated reciprocal slide member which withdraws objects from the top of a stack and returns the withdrawn objects to the bottom of the stack whereby the objects are advanced upwardly in the stack for viewing.

United States Patent 1191 Barclay Jan. 8, 1974 VIEWING APPARATUS3,696,537 10/1972 Alleman 40/7807 [75] Inventor: Roger Barclay, VernetLes Bains,

France Primary Examiner-Robert W. Michell [73] Assignees: Pierre Naguet,Le C irand; Soclete Assistant W lff Anonyme Laboservlce, Toulouse,Attorney-David S. Fishman et al. France [22] Filed: Mar. 27, 1972 [21]App]. No.: 238,295

[57] ABSTRACT [30] Foreign Application Priority Data 7 Apr. 19, 1971France 7113683 APParams for receiving a stack 0f flat Objects andserially presenting such objects to a viewing window is [52] US. Cl.40/78.07, 40/64 A disclosed-The viewing apparatus includes a manually s1 Int. Cl. G09f 11/30 P hecipwcal slide member which Withdraws 58 Fieldof Search 40/78.03, 78.07, fmm the mp a Stack and returns the with 40/791061, 36, 63 A, 64 A drawn objects to the bottom of the stack wherebythe objects are advanced upwardly in the stack for view- [56] ReferencesCited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,377,727 4/1968 Weggeland 40/78.07

10 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures PATENTEU JAN 8 74 SHEET 1 0F 3 PATENTEDMN81914 I 3,783,540

SHEET 2 [1F 3 PATENTED JAN 8 4 SHEET 3 OF 3 VIEWING APPARATUS BACKGROUNDOF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relatesto the display, in serial fashion, of flat items such as photographicprints. More specifically, this invention is directed to inexpensive andlightweight apparatus for containing a stack of flat objects and forpresenting each object before a viewing aperture in succession.Accordingly, the general objects of the present invention are to providenovel and improved methods and apparatus of such character.

2. Description of the Prior Art While not limited thereto in itsutility, the present invention is particularly well suited for thedisplaying of pictures singly and in a preselected sequence. Variousdevices have been proposed in the prior art for presenting, to a viewingwindow, photographic prints, postcards and the like. The prior artdevices have, however, been relatively complicated from a mechanicalviewpoint and thus have been too expensive and cumbersome to achievewidespread-use.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention overcomes the abovebriefly discussed and other disadvantages of the prior art by providinginexpensive and uncomplicated apparatus which is suitable fordistribution with photographic prints to enhance the attrativeness ofthe presentation of such prints. The foregoing and other objects of theinvention are achieved by apparatus which contains a stack of flatobjects, such as photographic prints, and by means of a singlemechanical manipulation successively presents each object from the stackto a viewing window or aperture.

Apparatus in accordance with the present invention includes a body ofgenerally rectangular shape'having an open upper portion. A transversebar extends across the opening and, in cooperation with an end memberand the two longitudinal sides of the body, defines a housing forreceiving a stack of flat objects such as photographic prints. Resilientmeans are provided 'at the bottom of the thus defined housing in theinterest of forcing the pile of objects upwardly. The apparatus alsoincludes a slide member which is mounted for reciprocating longitudinalmovement on the body. The slide member is provided with a viewingaperture or window of slightly smaller size than the housing portion ofthe body. The slide member is also provided, on its underside, withprojections which engage a first side edge of the uppermost object inthe stack when the slide is moved in a first direction. The slide memberis further provided, adjacent the side of the window therein disposedoppositely of the projections, with guide means which assist in thedirection of objects drawn off of the stack. The guide means engage asecond side edge of a withdrawn object during movement of the slidemember in the second direction and direct the object to the bottom ofthe stack. The positioning of the transverse bar is such that objectsdrawn off of the stack will pass over the bar as the slide moves in thefirst direction and such removed objects will thereafter be directedunder the bar to the bottom of the stack when the direction of movementof the slide is reversed.

Apparatus in accordance with the present invention may also becharacterized by a plate member which is positioned in the bottom of thebody housing and resiliently urged upwardly. This plate member serves toprotect the flat objects in the stack from direct contact with theresilient means, which comprise spring members in the form of strips,and tends to prevent undesirable canting of the stack of objects. Theplate member may be provided with tapering teeth which assists inguiding objects returned to the stack to bottom thereof; the taperedteeth extending under the transverse bar in the body.

A preferred embodiment of the present invention also includes a coverwhich is secured to the body. The cover is provided with a viewingaperture aligned with the housing defined by the body and havingsubstantially the same dimensions as the aperture in the slide member.The cover is also provided with resilient means, located remotely fromthe window in the direction of slide movement, for urging objects drawnoff the stack toward the bottom of the body.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING The present invention may be betterunderstood and its numerous objects and advantages will become apparentto those skilled in the art by reference to the accompanying drawingwherein like reference numerals refer to like elements in the severalfigures and in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of apparatus inaccordance with the invention;

FIG. 2 is a top planview, partly broken away to facilitate understandingof the invention, of the embodiments of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the apparatus as. shown inFIGS. 1 and 2, FIG. 3 viewing the apparatus in the opposite directionwhen compared to FIGS. 1 and 2; and

FIGS. 4, Sand 6 are cross sectional, side elevation views of theembodiment of FIG. 1 depicting various steps in an operational sequence.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT With particular reference toFIG. 3, the disclosed embodiment of the present invention comprises abody 1 of generally parallelopiped shape.'The body 1 defines, betweenoppositely disposed side walls 8 and 9, a recess which includes ahousing portion or cavity 2. A plate member 3 is installed in the bottomof housing portion 2 and is urged upwardly by a pair of spring members 5which bear against the bottom of housing portion 2.

As may best be seen from a joint consideration of FIGS. 3 and 4, a firstedge of plate member 3 has three pairs of tapered teeth 6 formedintegrally therewith. The teeth 6 extend below a transversely orientedbar 7 which interconnects the two sidewalls 8 and 9 of body 1.

A slide member 10 is mounted on body 1 and is movable with respectthereto in the manner to be described below. The slide member 10 has, ata first end, a downwardly extending edge 11 which serves as a grip tofacilitate manual reciprocation of the slide. At the end opposite toedge 11 the slide member 10 has a pair of arm extensions 12 and 13. Thefree end of arm 12 is provided with a broadened portion 14 which extendsinwardly toward the opposite arm 13. Similarly, arm 13 comprises abroadened portion 16 at its free end. The undersides of broadenedportions 14 and 16 of the arms are respectively provided with downwardlyextending stops or projections and 17. Projection 17 may be clearly seenin FIG. 4. The purpose of the projections l5 and 17 will become apparentfrom the discussion below.

The longitudinal edges of slide member 10, including the arm extensions,terminate with downwardly extending lateral edges 18. These lateraledges 18 extend the length of the slide member and, in the vicinity ofthe broadened portions 14 and 16 of arm extensions 12 and 13, areprovided with downwardly extending runner portions 19. The junction ofeach runner portion 19 and its associated lateral edge 18 defines ashoulder 21. The side walls 8 and 9 of the body 1 are provided withlongitudinal shoulders which define guides along which the runners 19move. The shoulders 20 are provided with a step, defined by a lateralstep or shoulder portion 22, and the bases of edges 18 of the slidemember are supported at all times on the portion of shoulder 20 to theleft of the stop 22 considering the device as shown in FIG. 3. The limitof movement of the slide 5 member 10 in a first direction, commensuratewith a withdrawal stroke, is determined by cooperation between shoulders21 on the slide and thestop shoulders 22 on body 1.

The arm extensions 12 and 13 of slide member 10 define a window 23 ofslightly similar dimension than housing portion 2 of body 1. On the sameside of window 23 as gripping edge '11, the slide member is provided, onits lower face, with a pair of shoes 24. These shoes may most clearly beseen from FIG. 5. Each of shoes 24 has a step 25 which is terminated byan inclined ramp 26. The bottom of shoes 24 slide on a base member 27which in part defines the bottom of the body 1. The longitudinal bar 7of body 1 is provided with a pair of cut-outs or grooves 28 which, withthe slide'member fully inserted as shown in FIG. 4, receive the shoes24.

The apparatus is completed by a cover member 30. Member 30 is providedwith a window 31 having the same dimensions as window 23 in slide member10. The cover member 30 is also provided with oppositely disposed sidemembers 32 which are provided with holes 33. Holes 33 receive screws 34which engage threaded holes 35 in the walls 8 and 9 of body 1.

While other spring loaded means could be employed, the cover member 30in the preferred embodiment has a plurality of curved resilient strips37 affixed to the inwardly disposed surface thereof. Also, in thevicinity of the edge of window 31 juxtapositioned to strips 37, covermember 30 is provided with stops 38. These stops cooperate with grooves39, which are provided at the corresponding edge of the window 23 inslide member 10, to limit the degree of motion of the slide member inthe second or insertion direction.

Returning to a consideration of the body 1, it is to be noted that afirst end thereof is terminated by solid section 40 which in partdefines the housing portion 2. Solid section 40 has, in its upper face,a pair of longitudinal parallel grooves 41. Grooves 41 receive tongues42 formed on the lower side of cover member 30; cooperation betweengrooves 41 and tongues 42 insuring registration of the components of theinvention during assembly and enhancing the structural integrity of theapparatus. The lower face of solid section 40 is provided with a recess43, which may be seen from FIGS.

4 4-7, which may be employed as a grip during reciprocation of the slidemember.

In use, a stack of photographic prints 50 or other suitable indiciabearing card-like members are placed upon the plate 3 in the housingportion 2 of body 1. When the apparatus is in the position shown inFIGS. 1, 2 and 4, the windows 23 and 31, respectively in the slide andcover, are in registration and the print 50 located at the top of thestack may be viewed.

To change the presentation the apparatus is held by means of the recess43 and, employing the grip 11, the slide member 10 is withdrawn in thedirection of the arrow on FIG. 5. During outward movement of the slidethe projections 15 and 17 on the free ends of arms 14 and 16 abutagainst the edge of the uppermost object 50 on the pile and withdraw theobject by passing it over the bar 7. FIG. 5 depicts the withdrawal of anobject and it may be seen that, when the window 23 is located oppositethe normally compressed resilient strips 37, the strips are released andforce the withdrawn object downwardly. The object 50 directed downwardlyby resilient strips 37 is thus caused to rest with a first end on thetapered teeth 6 of plate 3 and its second end on the sloping ramp 26 ofshoes 24.

After the slide member 10 has been fully withdrawn, as defined bycontact between shoulders 21 on the slide and stop shoulders 22 on body1, the slide member may be returned to its starting position as shown inFIG. 6. During the return or forward movement of the slide member theprojections 15 and 17 slide over the upper surface of the object 50which has moved to the top of the stack. The dimensioning of theapparatus is such that projections 15 and 17 do not completely clear thestack of objects 50 as slide is moved outwardly but completely clear thestack when the slide is fully inserted as shown in FIG. 4. The object 50which was removed from the top of the stack will be contacted by theshoulders defined by the step portion 25 of shoes 24 and will be guidedby the tapered teeth 6 of plate member 3 under the bar 7 and to thebottom of the stack 50. The withdrawn object will be fully returned tothe stack in view of the interleaving of the shoes 24 and tapered teeth6, as shown in FIG. 4, with the slide member fully inserted.

As will now be obvious to those skilled in the art, succession ofdifferent objects 50 may be presented through the aligned viewingwindows'3l and 23 merely by reciprocating the slide member 10. Apparatusin accordance with the present invention is uncomplicated, comprises acomparatively small number of components and can be formed frominexpensive plastic materials.

While a preferred embodiment has been shown and described variousmodifications and substitutions may be made thereto without departingfrom the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, it is to beunderstood that the invention has been described by way of illustrationand not limitation.

What is claimed is:

1. A viewing apparatus for containing a pile of flat objects for thesuccessive presentation of each object comprising:

a body of generally rectangular shape, said body comprising a base and apair of oppositely disposed longitudinal side walls extending upwardlyfrom the base, said side walls in part defining a recess at the upperside of the body;

divider means extending across said body recess norand a plurality oftapered teeth extending from said first portion under said divider meanswhereby said teeth cooperate with said divider means for guiding objectsreturned to the bottom of the pile.

of flat objects, the divider means being of reduced width when comparedto the height of said side walls and being positioned with respect tothe side walls and base of-said body in such a manner as to define aspace for the passage of individual of the 10 objects seriatum betweenthe divider means and said base;

plate means positioned in said cavity in said body and movable withrespect to the base of said body, said plate means including guide meanson the edge thereof juxtapositioned to said divider means for directingobjects passed between the divider means and base above said platemeans;

first resilient means installed in said body cavity for urging a pile offlat objects positioned therein on said plate means away from said basewith respect to said base;

a slide member supported by said body side walls, said slide memberbeing provided with a window of smaller dimensions than the body cavity,said slide 2 5 member being movable along said body side walls wherebysaid slide member window is capable of being positioned in registrationwith said cavity, said slide member further having first projectionmeans adjacent a first edge of the window therein, said projection meansextending generally inwardly toward the bottom of said body cavity andadapted 3. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein said divider meanscomprises:

a continuous transverse bar extending across said body.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising:

cover mounted on said body means over said slide member, said covermeans being provided with a window having substantially the samedimensions as the window in said slide member, said cover means windowbeing in registration with said body cavity and cooperating with saiddivider means to define a space above said divider means commensurate inwidth with the thickness of the individual objects.

5. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein said cover means further comprises:

second resilient means positioned above the region of the body to theside of said divider means located opposite to said cavity, said secondresilient means being normally compressed against the inner surface ofsaid cover means and extending downwardly through the window in saidslide member when said slide member is moved in said first direction tourge flat objects withdrawn from the pile to the vicinity of the bottomof said body.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein said plate means to cooperate withone of the edges of a flat object Includes: located uppermost on thepile, said slide member a firsdt portion for Supporting a Stack of flatobjects;

also having further inwardly extending projection means positionedadjacent to a second edge of the window disposed opposite to said firstwindow edge, said second projection means being further positioned atleast partly to the side of said divider means facing away from saidbody cavity whereby 40 said second projection means cooperates with saiddivider means to limit movement of said slide means in a firstdirection, said first projection means being adapted to withdrawn a flatobject lo cated at the upper end of the pile during movement of saidslide member in a second direction by passing the object over thedivider means and said second projection means pushing the thuswithdrawn yflat object beneath said divider means to the bot- Theapparatus of claim 1 wherein Said Slide tom of the pile when said slidemember is moved ber further Comprises: in the first direction, saidslide member further a p of pp y disposed longitudinal edges beingprovided with stop means; and, which cooperate with the body side wallsfor guidlimit means carried by said body means and coopering the motionof said slide member.

ating with said slide stop means for limiting motion 10. The apparatusof claim 1 wherein said divider a plurality of tapered teeth extendingfrom said first portion under said divider means whereby said teethcooperate with said divider means for guiding objects returned to thebottom of the pile.

7. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein said slide member further comprises:

a pair of oppositely disposed longitudinal edges which cooperate withthe body side walls for guiding the motion of said slide member.

8. The apparatus of claim 7 wherein said divider means comprises: i

a continuous transverse bar extending across said of said slide memberin the first direction. means comprises: 2. The apparatus of claim 1wherein said plate means a continuous transverse bar extending acrosssaid includes: body.

a first portion for supporting a stack of flat objects; v v

1. A viewing apparatus for containing a pile of flat objects for thesuccessive presentation of each object comprising: a body of generallyrectangular shape, said body comprising a base and a pair of oppositelydisposed longitudinal side walls extending upwardly from the base, saidside walls in part defining a recess at the upper side of the body;divider means extending across said body recess normally to said sidewalls and connecting the two longitudinal side walls intermediate theends thereof, said divider means cooperating with said side walls todefine a cavity in said body for receiving a pile of flat objects, thedivider means being of reduced width when compared to the height of saidside walls and being positioned with respect to the side walls and baseof said body in such a manner as to define a space for the passage ofindividual of the objects seriatum between the divider means and saidbase; plate means positioned in said cavity in said body and movablewith respect to the base of said body, said plate means including guidemeans on the edge thereof juxtapositioned to said divider means fordirecting objects passed between the divider means and base above saidplate means; first resilient means installed in said body cavity forurging a pile of flat objects positioned therein on said plate meansaway from said base with respect to said base; a slide member supportedby said body side walls, said slide member being provided with a windowof smaller dimensions than the body cavity, said slide member beingmovable along said body side walls whereby said slide member window iscapable of being positioned in registration with said cavity, said slidemember further having first projection means adjacent a first edge ofthe window therein, said projection means extending generally inwardlytoward the bottom of said body cavity and adapted to cooperate with oneof the edges of a flat object located uppermost on the pile, said slidemember also having further inwardly extending projection meanspositioned adjacent to a second edge of the window disposed opposite tosaid first window edge, said second projection means being furtherpositioned at least partly to the side of said divider means facing awayfrom said body cavity whereby said second projection means cooperateswith said divider means to limit movement of said slide means in a firstdirection, said first projection means being adapted to withdrawn a flatobject located at the upper end of the pile during movement of saidslide member in a second direction by passing the object over thedivider means and said second projection means pushing the thuswithdrawn flat object beneath said divider means to the bottom of thepile when said slide member is moved in the first direction, said slidemember further being provided with stop means; and, limit means carriedby said body means and cooperating with said slide stop means forlimiting motion of said slide member in the first direction.
 2. Theapparatus of claim 1 wherein said plate means includes: a first portionfor supporting a stack of flat objects; and a plurality of tapered teethextending from said first portion under said divider means whereby saidteeth cooperate with said divider means for guiding objects returned tothe bottom of the pile.
 3. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein said dividermeans comprises: a continuous transverse bar extending across said body.4. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising: cover mounted on saidbody means over said slide member, said cover means being provided witha window having substantially the same dimensions as the window in saidslide member, said cover means window being in registration with saidbody cavity and cooperating with said divider means to define a spaceabove said divider means commensurate in width with the thickness of theindividual objects.
 5. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein said cover meansfurther comprises: second resilient means positioned above the region ofthe body to the side of said divider means located opposite to saidcavity, said second resilient means being normally compressed againstthe inner surface of said cover means and extending downwardly throughthe window in said slide member when said slide member is moved in saidfirst direction to urge flat objects withdrawn from the pile to thevicinity of the bottom of said body.
 6. The apparatus of claim 5 whereinsaid plate means includes: a first portion for supporting a stack offlat objects; and a plurality of tapered teeth extending from said firstportion under said divider means whereby said teeth cooperate with saiddivider means for guiding objects returned to the bottom of the pile. 7.The apparatus of claim 6 wherein said slide member further comprises: apair of oppositely disposed longitudinal edges which cooperate with thebody side walls for guiding the motion of said slide member.
 8. Theapparatus of claim 7 wherein said divider means comprises: a continuoustransverse bar extending across said body.
 9. The apparatus of claim 1wherein said slide member further comprises: a pair of oppositelydisposed longitudinal edges which cooperate with the body side walls forguiding the motion of said slide member.
 10. The apparatus of claim 1wherein said divider means comprises: a continuous transverse barextending across said body.